The Gourmet Spoon buys the Seasoned Chef Cooking School

Thirteen years ago, chef Dan Witherspoon gave up an executive-chef position to build the Gourmet Spoon, which offers catering services plus a roster of interactive cooking experiences as private, on-site events.

During that time, he also taught classes at the Seasoned Chef Cooking School. And when the opportunity presented itself this summer to purchase the nearly two-decades-old facility, Witherspoon jumped at it.

"I've been an instructor here at the Seasoned Chef for seven years," Witherspoon explains. "When Susan Stevens decided to retire this summer, I decided to buy the school."

The acquisition, he explains, will allow Witherspoon to round out his Gourmet Spoon program with regularly offered classes, and the new space will give him another spot to hold the private events -- like corporate team-building -- that he's become known for.

The Gourmet Spoon officially took over at the school on September 1, rolling out a new schedule of classes for the fall that includes the same prominent instructors who have always been on board, as well as a few new faces and new subjects. Workshops cover everything from basic skills and butchering to sushi rolling and smoking.

"We've been working on the calendar since the summer," says Witherspoon. "We're ready to go."

A full lineup of what's available at the Seasoned Chef Cooking School is up on the Gourmet Spoon website.